Chandler Day of the Dead exhibit, celebration honors immigrant aide

This alter, created by the family of Virginia Cardenas, is part of a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) exhibit, "Pieces Behind the Altar," at the Xico Gallery in Downtown Chandler. It will be on display through Nov. 7.
Byline: Weldon B. Johnson/The Arizona Republic

The celebration of life is 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday at Dr. A.J. Chandler Park in Downtown Chandler.

The celebration includes music, dance, arts and crafts, food and children’s activities. There will be storytellers from the South Mountain Community College Storytelling Institute. Those who attend are invited to leave a memento on the community altar.

The festival concludes with a candlelight procession through the park at 5:30 p.m., and the singing of traditional songs at the community altar.

Artwork that is part of the exhibit, "Pieces Behind the Altar," will be on display at the Xico Gallery, 44 S. San Marcos Place, in Downtown Chandler through Nov. 7.

Each year, the Xico Gallery in Downtown Chandler features a display of altars and artwork for the Dia de los Muertos — Day of the Dead — Celebration of Life Festival.

This year’s display is different.

“We decided to make it more educational this year,” Xico Executive Director Donna Valdes said. “We decided to do the pieces behind the altar. We wanted something different so we have a deconstructed altar, basically.”

More than 20 artists have contributed pieces that explain elements of the altars. This year’s celebration also features an elaborate altar to honor Virginia Cárdenas, a prominent member of the Chandler community who died July 1.

Cárdenas spent much of her professional life working with recent immigrants or their families. She served as a counselor at Chandler High School and Arizona State University and was an adviser to the Hispanic Mother-Daughter Program. She had a passion for the arts and culture, at one time serving as chair of the Arizona Commission on the Arts and was a Xico Inc., board member.

The altar that serves as the centerpiece of this year’s Dia De Los Muertos exhibit at the gallery, 44 S. San Marcos Place, was created in her honor by her husband, José.

“There are all of the traditional elements. It’s also fairly elaborate,” Cárdenas said. “On the right side there is kind of the traditional Catholic view. It’s a little bit more somber and sad. The left-hand side is the indigenous approach, the laughing skeletons and the sugar skulls, the incense. In the middle, as best I could — height restrictions made me change things a little bit — is Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico.”

Cárdenas is host of the public-affairs television program, “Horizonte,” on Channel 8 and also senior legal counsel for ASU. The home he shared with his wife and their sons had a room decorated in a Dia de los Muertos theme.

The altar on display at the Xico gallery includes traditional elements as well as more modern ones, such as a digital display with a slideshow of images from Virginia Cárdenas’ life set to music. There is even a tongue-in-cheek reference to a nickname for Virginia Cárdenas, “La Doña.”

“ 'La Doña' is a term of respect for women,” Cárdenas said. “It’s typically attached when you reach a certain age.

“For my wife’s 50th, we had two proclamations from Gov. Napolitano, one naming her Doña of the Year and another listing her accomplishments. On the altar, we also have a book about a very famous doña, (Maria Felix a famous actress who was known as ‘La Doña.’)”

The altar stands as an example of the tradition. Other pieces at the gallery offer insight into the individual components in the making of an altar.

Twenty artists have created pieces that represent aspects of the altars.

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